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Foreign Policy and National Security

The United States can and should be a driving force around the world for freedom, human rights, and peace. This does not mean we should turn first to war and violence. Too many times, our first response to a foreign policy problem has been military action. Unilateral military interventions are counterproductive to our strategic goals and prolong violence and suffering. I support working together with the international community to find thoughtful diplomatic solutions for the complex issues facing our world.

I opposed the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and I continue to oppose the broad authorization of military force that has operated as a blank check for military use for 15 years. As a member of the House Armed Services Committee, I will push for diplomatic solutions, increased foreign assistance, and the need to conduct robust congressional oversight. I support innovative responses to 21st century national security threats.

Click here to learn more about the bills that I introduced and cosponsored.

Read my op-ed in The New York Times on U.S. involvement in the unconstitutional war in Yemen.

More on Foreign Policy and National Security

Washington, DC – Representatives Ro Khanna (CA-17), Adam Smith (WA-09), and Mark Pocan (WI-02), leaders of H. Con Res. 138 in the House, released the following statement in response to the announcement that the U.S. will be halting the refueling of Saudi-coalition aircraft in Yemen:

“Ending U.S. refueling of Saudi-led coalition aircraft is an encouraging step towards ending U.S. involvement in the Yemen civil conflict.

Fremont, CA. – U.S. Representatives Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Mark Pocan (D-WI) issued the following response to announcements by Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Secretary of State Pompeo regarding their intention to spur negotiations for a ceasefire to the conflict in Yemen within 30 days.

Santa Clara – In light of Secretary Pompeo’s recent statement, Rep. Ro Khanna, sponsor of H. Con. Res. 138, which seeks to stop U.S. military participation in Saudi Arabia's war against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, issued the below response:

Washington, DC – U.S. Representatives Ro Khanna (CA-17) and Mark Pocan (WI-02) today circulated a letter to their colleagues, requesting that Members of Congress join them in calling on Daniel Coats, Director of National Intelligence, to release information regarding the U.S. intelligence community’s advance knowledge of Saudi Arabia’s plot to capture journalist and American resident Jamal Khashoggi.

In August, the world watched in horror as a Saudi-led coalition airstrike in Yemen claimed the lives of 40 innocent children. The boys, many under the age of 10, were killed when their school bus was bombed during a class trip. The weapon used in that deadly bombing was made in America.

Democrats are pledging to rein in or reverse President Trump’s defense agenda if they take back Congress in November.

From seeking to ensure that transgender troops can continue to serve to blocking the administration from building low-yield nuclear weapons, Democrats have in their sights several moves Trump made in his first two years in office.

Washington, DC – Today, Rep. Ro Khanna, joined by nearly two dozen of his colleagues in the House of Representatives, introduced a bipartisan privileged resolution that once again seeks to stop U.S. military participation in Saudi Arabia's war against the Houthi rebels in Yemen. This is an entirely separate war from the fight against Al Qaeda, yet Congress has never authorized it. By invoking the War Powers Act of 1973, these members will force a congressional vote to officially withdraw U.S. forces from this unauthorized conflict. In September of 2017, Rep.

IN CONGRESS, FRUSTRATION with the U.S. role in Yemen is nearing a breaking point. Sen. Bob Menendez — the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — is holding up a $2 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates over concerns that the two countries routinely bomb civilian targets. Meanwhile, in the House, U.S. assistance to the Saudi- and UAE-led coalition is about to face another major hurdle.